This is the first posting on my new blog. The blog will be entitled “From Where I Sit: the bemusings and bemoanings of a Baby Boomer.” It will include a wide range of topics, like: Politics/Social Commentary; Sports; Music; Movies; and Miscellaneous thoughts on contemporary issues. I hope you’ll give it a few reads, as I get things figured out on the tech-side, and get rolling on the posts. I hope to post at least twice-weekly, and I welcome your feedback, comments and thoughts.
Hello world!
Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!
Nov 27 – The Environment
So, about the whole climate change “debate.” You know, the one where some people think that there’s nothing to worry about, it’s all a hoax, and that drilling for more fossil fuels, cutting down rain forests, and chopping off the tops of mountains in search of coal are good ideas. Where releasing a climate change report on the day after Thanksgiving, when “no one is looking” will hide the facts and realities. The fact is that the planet is warmer now, and has been getting warmer nearly every year for decades, and that the polar ice caps are melting, which causes sea levels to rise, which will flood coastal cities soon. Those things are inarguable. Whether they are the result largely/entirely of Man-made activity is the only thing even slightly in question (though >95% of scientists don’t seem to have any doubt or question). This seems to me like living in a house that is clearly on fire, and arguing over whether the fire was started by a human, or by lightning. And leaving stacks of newspapers around the house…while it’s still burning…you know, because, we have always liked to read old articles from time to time, so why change now just because Nature has started another fire? (The newspapers being analogous to the continued drilling for oil, btw, you know, for those who live in “Denial-ville,” and miss subtle references.) Umm, can we maybe put the fire OUT first and THEN worry about what started it? And I don’t know, maybe, scan in those articles and get rid of the paper, since, you know, paper burns really, REALLY fast?
The upshot: aside from the obvious need to reduce carbon emissions, we can actually make it profitable to switch to new, cleaner technologies. Did the candle industry continue to expand after electricity came along? Did kerosene lamp stocks continue to soar after streetlights were invented? Did horseshoes keep selling once cars were mass produced? So why do we think that the Exxon-Mobils, ConEdisons, and Koch Industries of the world are “owed” continued profits now that we actually have the ability to drastically reduce fossil fuel usage? Why do we keep drilling, fracking, pipelining, etc, when solar, wind, geothermal, hydroponics/vertical farming, electric vehicles, and countless other innovations are right here in our midst? And the funny thing is, those fossil fuel and utility companies could actually reap the biggest profits. They’re cash-rich. They have infrastructure for days. They have political connections up the wazoo (to get themselves situated to capitalize on the “new economics” of renewable energy, which clearly will require governmental regulation, industrial standardization, etc). And they have a high-tech workforce already in place. What’s the downside? Other than acknowledging that they were, you know, wrong, lying, and potentially killing us all with their climate change denials. But hey, I’m willing to let bygones be bygones…once the fire is out! Just sayin’…
Nov 14, 2018 – The passing of a legend
So, I forgot to mention this earlier. Some of you read a lot. Some of you have read a lot of Shakespeare, some have read a lot of Baldwin, others, Morrison, or Gladwell, or Rowling, or Angelou, etc, etc. And I am proud to say that I have read a little bit of all of those people’s works, but the person who I have read more of than anyone…by FAR, passed away this week. Yes, Stan Lee died this week. Creator of: Spider Man, the Fantastic Four, The Avengers, The Black Panther, The X-Men, The Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, etc, etc, died, and so did a little part of me. ‘Nuff sed
Oct 25, 2018 – Political Commentary
So, on a much more important note, I think we have to talk about the whole pipe bomb situation. FB fam, this is out of hand. I know that I have friends, neighbors, co-workers, band-members, etc who are Republicans. Historically, I have always respected their right to their opinion, despite my obvious disagreement with their beliefs/policies/politics. But I have cautioned them about the level of rhetoric, the lies, and the almost rabid nature of some of the Right-leaning media. It is those things that created the climate that “45” rode as a perfect storm into the White House. But now we’ve reached a new low. Sending pipe bombs to a variety of Democrats is beyond the pale, and frankly, is almost exclusively a flaw and creation of the Right. (The overwhelming majority of domestic violence/terror in the last 30 years has been by Right-leaning people.) It is the manifestation of that hatred, those lies, that racism/supremacy, and those mob-like rallies and chants that we’ve all witnessed over the last decade or two–but especially in the last 2 years. And I am calling on those of you with whom I may disagree on may political issues, to speak out against this type of action. Violence is obviously not the answer. But more importantly, the mindset that has begotten this violence has to be addressed. Sure, you may like some of the policies: the tax breaks, the Supreme Court stacking, the reducing of the social safety nets, etc, but it’s time to speak out against the rabid rhetoric because it has now clearly gone too far. You can no longer simply say that “I support the policies, not the tweets,” or, “I don’t agree with everything he says, but I support the party,” etc. It is time to step up and speak out against the path we’re on.
The President of the United States should be a leader and healer, not a tacit supporter of violence. S/he is not supposed to tweet or publicly utter messages that incite divisiveness and violence.This President does that ALL THE TIME! If you can’t see that, if you can’t honestly acknowledge that, then YOU are a part of the problem. But I think you DO see it, and I am asking you to speak out against it. I’m not asking you to vote for a Democrat, necessarily, but I am asking you to demand more from your party, from your media outlets, from your elected officials. Tell them you won’t stand for the rhetoric, the name-calling, the racist rants, the press-bashing, the dog-whistle catch-phrases, the political expediency, etc. To use an oft-repeated cliche, “we must be able to disagree without being disagreeable.” That means NOT making light (at rallies, etc) of “trying to be calm” or “trying to be good.” It’s not funny! It’s not a joke! We need leadership, not reality TV. No matter who you vote for next month, you must let them know that you expect more from them–that you will support them when they take a stand, and that you expect them to hold 45, and others, to account. This is NOT Fake News, it’s Fake Leadership!
I am currently a member of the most diverse group of musicians I’ve ever worked with (in every sense of the word diverse–age, ethnicity, politics, etc). I write lyrics that try to speak to our higher/better angels, e.g.:
“Purple are the people I believe in
Pendulum is never very far
Doesn’t take a genius, to avoid the acts of meanness
Fairness doesn’t start with D or R”
But when I hear the silent complicity of my friends, our media outlets, and our elected officials, I wonder if that message isn’t “too little, too late.”
Please prove me wrong. Please find your voice. Please condemn both the pipe bombs, and the verbal bombs–against the press, against immigrants, against reason. Please don’t “sit this one out.” Or I think we are headed for a “2nd Civil War.” A secession by some part of our country–maybe the “North” this time, to acknowledge the divisiveness we have fallen victim to. That’s not what I want, but it seems where we’re headed…unless we stand up and speak out.